Characterisation of a High-Performance Al–Zn–Mg–Cu Alloy Designed for Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing
Ever-increasing demands of industrial manufacturing regarding mechanical properties require the development of novel alloys designed towards the respective manufacturing process. Here, we consider wire arc additive manufacturing. To this end, Al alloys with additions of Zn, Mg and Cu have been desig...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2020-04-01
|
| Series: | Materials |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/13/7/1610 |
| _version_ | 1797571726917238784 |
|---|---|
| author | Paulo J. Morais Bianca Gomes Pedro Santos Manuel Gomes Rudolf Gradinger Martin Schnall Salar Bozorgi Thomas Klein Dominik Fleischhacker Piotr Warczok Ahmad Falahati Ernst Kozeschnik |
| author_facet | Paulo J. Morais Bianca Gomes Pedro Santos Manuel Gomes Rudolf Gradinger Martin Schnall Salar Bozorgi Thomas Klein Dominik Fleischhacker Piotr Warczok Ahmad Falahati Ernst Kozeschnik |
| author_sort | Paulo J. Morais |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Ever-increasing demands of industrial manufacturing regarding mechanical properties require the development of novel alloys designed towards the respective manufacturing process. Here, we consider wire arc additive manufacturing. To this end, Al alloys with additions of Zn, Mg and Cu have been designed considering the requirements of good mechanical properties and limited hot cracking susceptibility. The samples were produced using the cold metal transfer pulse advanced (CMT-PADV) technique, known for its ability to produce lower porosity parts with smaller grain size. After material simulations to determine the optimal heat treatment, the samples were solution heat treated, quenched and aged to enhance their mechanical performance. Chemical analysis, mechanical properties and microstructure evolution were evaluated using optical light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray fluorescence analysis and X-ray radiography, as well as tensile, fatigue and hardness tests. The objective of this research was to evaluate in detail the mechanical properties and microstructure of the newly designed high-performance Al–Zn-based alloy before and after ageing heat treatment. The only defects found in the parts built under optimised conditions were small dispersed porosities, without any visible cracks or lack of fusion. Furthermore, the mechanical properties are superior to those of commercial 7xxx alloys and remarkably independent of the testing direction (parallel or perpendicular to the deposit beads). The presented analyses are very promising regarding additive manufacturing of high-strength aluminium alloys. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T20:44:36Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-1c707470a10741618fdef7725f5dca36 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1996-1944 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T20:44:36Z |
| publishDate | 2020-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Materials |
| spelling | doaj.art-1c707470a10741618fdef7725f5dca362023-11-19T20:21:38ZengMDPI AGMaterials1996-19442020-04-01137161010.3390/ma13071610Characterisation of a High-Performance Al–Zn–Mg–Cu Alloy Designed for Wire Arc Additive ManufacturingPaulo J. Morais0Bianca Gomes1Pedro Santos2Manuel Gomes3Rudolf Gradinger4Martin Schnall5Salar Bozorgi6Thomas Klein7Dominik Fleischhacker8Piotr Warczok9Ahmad Falahati10Ernst Kozeschnik11Instituto de Soldadura e Qualidade, Av. Prof. Dr. Cavaco Silva, 33, 2740-120 Porto Salvo, PortugalInstituto de Soldadura e Qualidade, Av. Prof. Dr. Cavaco Silva, 33, 2740-120 Porto Salvo, PortugalInstituto de Soldadura e Qualidade, Av. Prof. Dr. Cavaco Silva, 33, 2740-120 Porto Salvo, PortugalInstituto de Soldadura e Qualidade, Av. Prof. Dr. Cavaco Silva, 33, 2740-120 Porto Salvo, PortugalLKR Light Metals Technologies Ranshofen, Austrian Institute of Technology, Lamprechtshausenerstraße 61, 5282 Ranshofen-Braunau, AustriaLKR Light Metals Technologies Ranshofen, Austrian Institute of Technology, Lamprechtshausenerstraße 61, 5282 Ranshofen-Braunau, AustriaLKR Light Metals Technologies Ranshofen, Austrian Institute of Technology, Lamprechtshausenerstraße 61, 5282 Ranshofen-Braunau, AustriaLKR Light Metals Technologies Ranshofen, Austrian Institute of Technology, Lamprechtshausenerstraße 61, 5282 Ranshofen-Braunau, AustriaSinusPro GmbH, Conrad-von-Hötzendorf-Straße 127, 8010 Graz, AustriaMatCalc Engineering GmbH, Gumpendorfer Strasse 21, 1060 Vienna, AustriaMatCalc Engineering GmbH, Gumpendorfer Strasse 21, 1060 Vienna, AustriaMatCalc Engineering GmbH, Gumpendorfer Strasse 21, 1060 Vienna, AustriaEver-increasing demands of industrial manufacturing regarding mechanical properties require the development of novel alloys designed towards the respective manufacturing process. Here, we consider wire arc additive manufacturing. To this end, Al alloys with additions of Zn, Mg and Cu have been designed considering the requirements of good mechanical properties and limited hot cracking susceptibility. The samples were produced using the cold metal transfer pulse advanced (CMT-PADV) technique, known for its ability to produce lower porosity parts with smaller grain size. After material simulations to determine the optimal heat treatment, the samples were solution heat treated, quenched and aged to enhance their mechanical performance. Chemical analysis, mechanical properties and microstructure evolution were evaluated using optical light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray fluorescence analysis and X-ray radiography, as well as tensile, fatigue and hardness tests. The objective of this research was to evaluate in detail the mechanical properties and microstructure of the newly designed high-performance Al–Zn-based alloy before and after ageing heat treatment. The only defects found in the parts built under optimised conditions were small dispersed porosities, without any visible cracks or lack of fusion. Furthermore, the mechanical properties are superior to those of commercial 7xxx alloys and remarkably independent of the testing direction (parallel or perpendicular to the deposit beads). The presented analyses are very promising regarding additive manufacturing of high-strength aluminium alloys.https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/13/7/1610wire arc additive manufacturingprecipitation hardeningAl–Zn–Mg–Cu alloysmicrostructure characterisationmechanical properties |
| spellingShingle | Paulo J. Morais Bianca Gomes Pedro Santos Manuel Gomes Rudolf Gradinger Martin Schnall Salar Bozorgi Thomas Klein Dominik Fleischhacker Piotr Warczok Ahmad Falahati Ernst Kozeschnik Characterisation of a High-Performance Al–Zn–Mg–Cu Alloy Designed for Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing Materials wire arc additive manufacturing precipitation hardening Al–Zn–Mg–Cu alloys microstructure characterisation mechanical properties |
| title | Characterisation of a High-Performance Al–Zn–Mg–Cu Alloy Designed for Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing |
| title_full | Characterisation of a High-Performance Al–Zn–Mg–Cu Alloy Designed for Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing |
| title_fullStr | Characterisation of a High-Performance Al–Zn–Mg–Cu Alloy Designed for Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing |
| title_full_unstemmed | Characterisation of a High-Performance Al–Zn–Mg–Cu Alloy Designed for Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing |
| title_short | Characterisation of a High-Performance Al–Zn–Mg–Cu Alloy Designed for Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing |
| title_sort | characterisation of a high performance al zn mg cu alloy designed for wire arc additive manufacturing |
| topic | wire arc additive manufacturing precipitation hardening Al–Zn–Mg–Cu alloys microstructure characterisation mechanical properties |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/13/7/1610 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT paulojmorais characterisationofahighperformancealznmgcualloydesignedforwirearcadditivemanufacturing AT biancagomes characterisationofahighperformancealznmgcualloydesignedforwirearcadditivemanufacturing AT pedrosantos characterisationofahighperformancealznmgcualloydesignedforwirearcadditivemanufacturing AT manuelgomes characterisationofahighperformancealznmgcualloydesignedforwirearcadditivemanufacturing AT rudolfgradinger characterisationofahighperformancealznmgcualloydesignedforwirearcadditivemanufacturing AT martinschnall characterisationofahighperformancealznmgcualloydesignedforwirearcadditivemanufacturing AT salarbozorgi characterisationofahighperformancealznmgcualloydesignedforwirearcadditivemanufacturing AT thomasklein characterisationofahighperformancealznmgcualloydesignedforwirearcadditivemanufacturing AT dominikfleischhacker characterisationofahighperformancealznmgcualloydesignedforwirearcadditivemanufacturing AT piotrwarczok characterisationofahighperformancealznmgcualloydesignedforwirearcadditivemanufacturing AT ahmadfalahati characterisationofahighperformancealznmgcualloydesignedforwirearcadditivemanufacturing AT ernstkozeschnik characterisationofahighperformancealznmgcualloydesignedforwirearcadditivemanufacturing |